Jaques

John Jaques of London is the oldest and most venerable games company in the world. Established in 1795 as a bone & ivory turner, the company has continued as a family-run business to this day and is currently directed by the seventh generation of Jaques family members.

Throughout its long history, Jaques have consistently held a fine reputation for producing quality products as well as ground-breaking new ideas and games. In particular, Jaques either invented or were the primary force behind the following games during the 1800s:

Happy Families
Tiddledy-Winks
Ludo
Snakes and Ladders
Table Tennis (originally called "Gossima")
Croquet

While the invention of Table Tennis and the promotion of Croquet were highly significant historical achievements, Jaques most famous achievement was the invention of the "Staunton" design for chess pieces. The chess piece design now used the world over was invented by Nathaniel Cooke, John Jaques II father-in-law - Jaques produced the Staunton pieces from 1849. The Jaques name is still renowned for quality.

Masters Traditional Games has been working with Jaques since 1998 and today are the leading Internet retail site for Jaques products. James Masters, the owner of Masters Traditional Games, has a wide and deep understanding of Jaques games and has assisted Jaques Directors with the development of some of their products. Both companies hold the same values of high quality, excellent service and a love of games, old and new so it isn't surprising that the relationship between the two companies has burgeoned over the years.